Wheeled toy



E. S, SAVAGE Feb. 4, 1947.

WHEELED TOY Filed Oct. 7, 1944 1N VENTOR Patented Feb. 4, 1947 UNlTED STATES PATENT OFFICE 8 Claims.

The present invention relates to Wheeled figure toys in which the toy is designed to be pulled or propelled along a supporting surface and one or more parts thereoic are given movements imitating movements of the .simulated living subject. However certain features of the invention are also applicable to other types of wheeled vvehicles which may or may not be classified as toys.

The primary object of the invention is to provide extremely simple form of wheeled toy or other vehicle which will guide itself to travel a sinuous course when pulled or propelled along a supporting surface. A further object of the invention is to provide guiding means consisting of one or more guiding wheels carried by an axle which is actuated to oscillate horizontally by ro" tation of said guiding wheel or wheels only. A further object or" the invention is to provide a simple form of wheeled'ngure toy having a head member adapted for horizontal turning movement and means te cause the head to oscillate so that it will constantly face in the direction of travel of the toy. Other objects will appear as the description proceeds.

In the accompanying drawing i have illustrated one embodiment of my invention as, incorporated in a pull toy 'simulating a swimming duck but it will be understood that the invention can be otherwise embodied and that the drawing is not to be construed as defining or limiting the scope oi the invention, the claims appended hereto being relied upon for that purpose.

In the drawing:

Fig. i is a plan view the improved toy with he upper forward portion taken in horizontal section approximately on line i-I or Fig. 2, show ing guiding wheels and head member turned to the left.

Fig. 2 is a vertical section taken approximately online 2-2 of Fig. l, showing guiding wheels and head member in straight ahead position.

The same reference numerals in the two views indicate the same parts.

The toy in the preferred form includes a hollow body shown here as constructed of wood, comprising the top board i2, front molding i3, rear molding it and side plates .l5 and i5. The toy is provided with two pairs of wheels, front wheels I6 and I6' and rear `wheels Il, both pairs of which are entirely enclosed within the toy body except on the under side. The front wheels i5 and it function as guiding wheels `to guide the toy when it is being pulled along a supporting surface by means of the pull string I8. The guiding wheels l5 and I6 are fast on the ends of the short axle It which is journalled in the swivel block 2li. The swivel block 2D is fast on the lower end of the vertical pivot pin 2i and the head and bill member 22 is fast on the upper portion of the pivot pin .2L while the center portion of the pin is free to turn in the bearing hole 2529 in the top body board l2. The head and bill member 22 is set in alignment with the guiding wheels i6 and IE so that when the wheels are in position for straight ahead travel the head and bill will be facing straight ahead.

A link 23 is pivoted freely at one end to a Din 24 which projects inside the body plate I5. This pin Mis preferably located some distance to the rear of and horizontally in line With the axle E9. The other end of the link 23 ts loosely over a pin 255 which projects from the outer face of the wheel I l at an eccentric position thereon, being offset from the wheel center by the distance E as shown. It is to be noted that the length of the link 23, between centers of the holes, is substantially equal to the horizontal distance from the center point of the axle I8 to the center of the pin 2t, measurement being taken in side elevation as in Fig. 2. When the wheels .Hi and l5 are caused to rotate, the link 23 being connected from pin 24 to pin 25 servesv to retain the pin 25 against any `substantial horizontal motion while permitting vertical movement of the pin 25 for a distance equal to `twice the offset distance E. It is obvious that1l since movement of the pin 25 `is so restricted by the link 23, rotation of the Wheels i@ and E6 will cause reciprocal angular movement or oscillation o' the whole pivoted assembly of the wheels, the swivel block 59 and head and bill member 22, about the axis of the pivot pin 2i. Fig. l shows the extreme left hand position of the guiding wheels, the corresponding position of the head and bill member being shown in full lines at 22. The extreme right hand .position of the head and bill member is indicated 4by the dotted lines at 22', The result of this angular oscillation of the guiding wheels i8 and i6', when the toy being pulled along a supporting surface, is -to cause the toy to travel sinuous course and the head and bill member E2, turning in unison with the guiding wheels, give the ligure the interesting and amusing effect ofllooking where it is going.

The rear wheels il may be tight on the axle 2d which turns freely in bearings in .the body side plates l5 and I5', or the wheels lmay t freely on the axle with said axle fitting tightly in the side plates l5 and I5'.

It will be apparent that I have provided in this applied to toys invention an extremely simple and inexpensive construction whereby swiveling movement of a vguiding wheel is actuated by rotation of said guiding wheel only, resulting in sinuous travel of the toy when pulled along a supporting surface.

I am aware that swiveling movement of guiding wheels has been accomplished in other toy vehicles by more complex and expensive constructions wherein reciprocable connecting means actuated by some moving part of the vehicle, other than the guiding means, causes the guiding wheel or wheels to oscillate. Illustrative of such constructions the following is a list of patents with which I am familiar, all of which disclose forms of such mechanically actuated guiding means: Flaherty, No. 725,432; Lewis et al., No. 1,343,834; Ciaffone, No. 1,217,704; de Filippis, No. 1,332,545; de Filippis, No. 1,357,491; de Filippis, No. 1,756,539; and Pellerin, No. 1,988,396.

Whereas the accompanying drawing illustrates my ,invention in the form of a pull toy only, it is evident that the invention may be similarly utilizing some self propelling means such as an electric motor or spring motor drive. If some such driving means is utilized it would most conveniently be installed within the body and connected to drive the rear wheels Il. l

It is apparent that the use of some such self propelling means does not in any way affect the essential features of this invention as herein shown and described.

I claim:

1. A wheeled yvehicle movable over a supporting surface comprising a body, a horizontally swiveling guiding wheel having an eccentrically positioned pin projecting laterally from said wheel, and means to restrain said pin against substantial horizontal movement in relation to the l body while permitting unrestricted vertical movement of the pin when the guiding wheel rotates.

2. A wheeled vehicle movable over a supporting surface comprising a body, a horizontally oscillating guiding wheel and means to cause oscillating movement of the wheel to guide the Vehicle along a sinuous course While said wheel rotates comprising connecting means eccentrically positioned on said wheel, and a control member mounted on a stationary pivot on the body and coacting with said connecting means to control i Vmovement of said connecting means to cause horizontal oscillation of said Wheel.

3. Awheeled vehicle movable over a supporting surface comprising a body, a guiding wheel mounted on said` body to rotate about an approximately horizontal axis and to oscillate about an approximately vertical axis, and means positioned eccentricallywith respect to both of said axes and turning bodily withI said wheel as it rolls over said surface, for oscillating said wheel cause oscillation of said wheel about said approximately vertical axes as it rotates about said approximately horizontal axis.

5. A wheeled vehicle movable over a supporting surface comprising a body, a pair of guiding wheels spacedly positioned on a common axle and adapted to oscillate approximately horizontally about an intermediate approximately vertical axis, a pin eccentrically positioned on and projecting from the cuter face of one of said wheels, and a control member connected to the body and acting on said pin to restrict movement thereof in a horizontal direction in relation to the body Vand thereby to effect approximately horizontal oscillating movement of the guiding wheels about said approximately vertical axis to guide the vehicle along a sinuous course when the vehicle is caused to move over a supporting surface.

6. A wheeled figure toy movable over a supporting surface comprising a body, an upwardly extending shaft adapted to turn in said body, a substantially horizontal axle mounted on the lower portion of said shaft, a guidingV wheel mounted on said axle, ra head member positioned in facial alignment with said wheel and xedly carried by and turning with the upper portion of said shaft, a pin eccentrically positioned on and extending laterally from said wheel at a point to one side of said shaft, and a control member connected to the body and acting on said pin to restrict movement thereof in a horizontal direction in relation to the body and thereby to effect oscillation of said wheel and shaft and attached head member, thus causing the vehicle to -be guided along a sinuous course and the head member to move to constantly face in the direction of travel when the vehicle is caused to move over a supporting surface.

7. A wheeled vehicle adapted to be propelled over a flat surface, said vehicle including a circular guiding wheel mounted for concentric revolution about an approximately horizontal axis concentric with said'wheel, by frictional engagement with the surface over which the vehicle is propelled, and also mounted for oscillatio-n about an approximately vertical axis to cause the vehicle to move in varying directions, and means operated by the revolution of said Wheel about said horizontal axis for causing oscillation thereof about said vertical axis, so that the vehicle will travel in a sinuous path.

8. A construction as described in claim 7, in which said means for causing oscillation about s-aid vertical axis comprises a link pivoted at one end to said wheel eccentrically of both of said axes, and extending in a generally horizontal direction to a connection with the body of said vehicle, and restrained against movement in said horizontal direction, so that as said wheel turns about s-aid horizontal axis the reaction of said wheel against said link causes said wheel to turn also about said vertical axis.

EDWARD S. SAVAGE,

REFERENCES CITED The following references are ofrecord in the iile of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,602.561 Wetzell Oct. 12, 1926 2,334,742 Anderson Nov. 23, 1943 

